I was born in Punjab, and lived there until my early 20s. I was active in local politics, and sat on the city council in Jalandhar. But England is the mother of all parliaments – so when friends moved to the UK, I followed them.
When I arrived, in 1965, I thought the Labour party was for labourers. I went along to a meeting: they were drinking like fish, smoking like chimneys and talking a lot about unions. So I decided to join the Conservative party. They seemed to care more about business, and I wanted to start my own.
I rented a room in Southall, west London. It cost £3 a week, but I was earning £12 a week as a packer in a rubber factory and my week’s food cost £2, so I was saving at least £5. Money was good in those days. In 1967, I went to Birmingham, where I still live, and started my property business. It was a long road but I’ve done well with it.
I first met Margaret Thatcher in India in 1978. She went to see Mrs Gandhi and we were introduced at a dinner. She said: “Come and see me when you’re back in the UK.” So I did. She wanted to ask me why British Asians didn’t vote Conservative. I said: “We’re not welcome in your party; the old guard won’t let us in. You need to give us some confidence that you like us.” So we put in a lot of time together at the Anglo-Asian Conservative Association, of which she was president. We worked hard, setting up committees, giving out awards.
I wanted to become the first Indian Conservative MP. I wanted a safe seat, of course, and went to many interviews, but if you weren’t a barrister, solicitor or chartered accountant, it was a closed shop. I did stand – for Birmingham Small Heath, in 1983 and 1987 – but it was a strong Labour seat.
This photograph was taken at the Tory Ball during the Blackpool conference in 1985. “The PM’s coming in,” they said. And you could feel the electricity in the air when she walked in.
I first saw it in a magazine, I can’t remember which one. My eldest son, Sundeep, brought it home and said: “Dad, you are now very famous.” I was thrilled. I’m proud to be an active member of the Conservative party.
At the 1987 conference, there was a big debate about immigration. I was the last speaker. I said: “I’m a British citizen now. How can you ask me to get out?” The speech went down well; I made the front page of several newspapers.
I briefly defected to Labour in 2000. I had some disagreements with William Hague, and I was fascinated with Tony Blair. I stayed with them for five years, but eventually went back to my roots, and I’m a happy man.
I’m 70 and I still work. I’m the chair of the Asian People’s Welfare Society in Birmingham. I see people twice a week, helping them with paperwork on anything from selling land in India to applying for passports and other legal work.
I go back to India every two years to recharge my batteries. I usually head south. You need to see India by train, as Mahatma Gandhi said. If you’ve got the money you can live like a king there. But Birmingham is home now. My children and two grandchildren are here and they keep me young.
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